It’s no secret that humans are visual creatures. In fact, there’s a vast body of research proving that 93% of all of our communication is non-verbal.
Moreover, it’s well known now that we process images much more quickly than text. In fact, marketers have used this fact for years now to create better and more engaging strategies.
However, visuals can also be used more directly – for sales. Small changes in your sales visuals can make a major impact on your conversion rate and overall sales. Here are some of our top hacks for improving your sales with visuals.
Sales Visual #1: Explainer Videos
You’ve probably heard that video is the medium of the future. With video, you can explain ideas succinctly and impress your customers within seconds.
Perhaps most importantly, videos are great for sales. According to Wordstream, marketers that use video grow their revenue 49% faster than those that don’t. The problem is knowing what type of videos to create and where to publish them for maximum effect.
Explainer videos are among the first types of video to create and it’s one of the most successful ones at that.
According to one of the industry leaders, Wyzowl, explainer videos are the most common type of created videos – 72% of businesses use them for sales and marketing, followed by presentation videos (49%) and strictly sales videos (42%).
But why are explainer videos so good for sales?
One, they are excellent at grabbing attention. The average person browsing the internet has an attention span of just a few seconds, which means that you have to try extra hard to win their attention.
Moreover, you need to work even harder to get them to buy. Explainers are usually super short videos that grab attention immediately and only take a minute to watch.
Here’s an example of Visme’s explainer video below.
You can tell the entire story about your product and the way it works in just a minute or two. Compare that to forcing your visitors to read a landing page or a lengthy blog post, and it’s clear what is shorter and easier to consume.
The second reason is that videos are a linear type of content that shows a problem and a solution.
Your customer will be able to see where they are and how your product or service helps them earn more money, win back their free time or solve a business problem, all through a practical example.
The third reason why explainer videos are effective for sales is that you can get wildly creative. Sure, landing pages convert, but you can only do so much with words.
Video allows you to express yourself with different styles of animation, voice acting, character visualization, and much more. You can make something truly captivating.
Fourth, you can re-use your explainer videos for different sales approaches. While you might have a range of landing pages on your website, explainer videos are just more versatile.
You can reuse one video on your website, social media campaigns, email outreach, product pages, product demos, onboarding emails, and anything else that you can think of. The value of an explainer video is immense when you think of all the different uses.
Overall, no matter what you sell and how you prefer to sell, explainer videos are an excellent tool that you need at your disposal.
Sales Visual #2: Infographics
Infographics are a well-known tool that sums up important data at a glance, and marketers have been using them for years. However, they can also be an effective sales tool if you use them the right way.
Coming from a background in marketing, I usually use infographics to sum up other people’s data in an interesting way. This makes the infographics we create beneficial for generating new backlinks to our website.
You can use the same approach for sales. Instead of focusing on raw data, focus on presenting what your product or service does for your audience.
One great way to do this is by using a comparison chart, like the customizable template below.
Instead of telling them a story through a landing page, show them what your product does in the form of an infographic.
It’s a chance to get creative and just like explainer videos, infographics can be used in a variety of platforms, such as emails or social media.
Sales Visual #3: Screenshots
While this is important for many companies, it’s especially important in SaaS marketing – screenshots!
One of the biggest mistakes that we often see in the world of SaaS is the lack of visual representation of how the product actually looks.
Think about it – if you’re an eCommerce store selling a pair of sneakers, you’ll have a great, unique product photo that you can show on your product and landing pages, emails and social media.
On the other hand, a SaaS product is a piece of software that you can interact with, and in a lot of cases, companies are relying on their customers just “getting it” from the product description.
Needless to say, this is a poor strategy.
If you want your customers to see the before and after and realize just how easy it is to use your product, your best bet is to fill up your website and product pages with great, high-quality screenshots.
If you want to go one step further, you can create .gif images from screenshots for that maximum effect.
Without spending thousands on creating videos, you can convince the customer that they can, for example, track how their business proposal is doing in terms of opens and reading time.
Once you start creating screenshots, you may get inspired to write FAQ pages or instructions on how to use your product, which I strongly encourage.
As we started creating product screenshots, we realized that they’re an excellent foundation for a help center on our website.
Even if you’ve never used the product before, you’ll be able to see how to use the main features in detail. This instills additional confidence in visitors who are on the fence when it comes to purchasing.
As someone who’s been there before, there is one thing to note about product screenshots, be it static or GIF format. You’re bound to go through lots of different iterations of your digital product and change your design, feature, visual elements, copy, and much more.
With each new change to your product, you’ll need to completely change your screenshots to reflect the new state of affairs.
With that being said, screenshots are one of the easiest ways to show customers the value of your product and they don’t take lots of time or money to use as a sales tool. Just make sure that they are up to date and you should be good to go.
Sales Visual #4: Branding
In the world of SaaS, there are a few companies that everyone watches out for, even if they’re not your direct competitor. If someone at Slack or Hubspot makes a new change in their marketing approach or visuals, everyone is bound to notice.
Also, when you think about either of these two companies, you probably remember their logo and design, and not just because they’re really good.
One of the reasons why big brands are so good at selling themselves beyond their product is because they have a coherent visual style.
If you go to Hubspot’s website, you’ll notice that their visuals are coherent on their product pages, landing pages, emails, social media graphics, and everywhere you look.
In general, when you think of big, successful brands, their visual style is one of the things that makes them stand out.
If you want to have an easier time selling your product and “selling” yourself as the company, you need to adopt a style and use it across your website, marketing collateral, and your product.
That means color schemes, fonts, logos, marketing messages, and everything that goes with it.
The only con is that every time you undergo a major design overhaul, you need to update everything at once.
Create Your Own Sales Visuals Today
Visuals are a huge part of sales and if you consciously focus on your visual appearance, you’ll notice that your conversion rates will grow and your sales team will have an easier time pitching your product or service to potential customers.
While visuals are usually a matter of marketing, this is one area where sales can benefit greatly if the job is well done.
So make sure your visuals are unique, coherent, accurate, and with plenty of great screenshots. And don’t forget to invest your time in great explainer videos and infographics.
This post was written by Petra Odak, a Chief Marketing Officer at Better Proposals, a simple yet incredibly powerful proposal software tool that helps you send high-converting, web-based business proposals in minutes. She’s a solution-oriented marketing enthusiast with more than 5 years of experience in various fields of marketing and project management.
